When it comes to fan relations, the Orioles sometimes have the touch of a blacksmith.

Take their two latest moves: raising the price of tickets bought the day of the game and charging more for 19 "premium games," which include Opening Day and all Yankees and Red Sox games.

Here is Cowherd's Primary Theory of Sports Commerce: If your team stinks and you're having trouble attracting fans, jacking up ticket prices is generally not a good PR move.

I would say 12 straight losing seasons and another Titanic-like finish last year qualifies as "stinks," wouldn't you?

Or are we being too harsh here?

Nevertheless, if it's a great night for baseball and you decide on a whim to head over to Camden Yards to catch a game this year, the Orioles will nail you for an extra $1 to $5, depending on the original price of your seat.

Sure, that $2 average might not sound like much. But the last time I checked, the economy was still sputtering and a whole lot of folks were out of work.

Try telling a struggling family of five that a couple of extra bucks per ticket is no big deal. I'll wait over here while they kick you in the shins.

The team's spin on the new game-day ticket pricing is that it rewards fans who buy tickets in advance.

To which I would say: Uh, maybe. But it leaves a bad taste in the mouths of fans who don't buy early. And even if their numbers aren't great - say a few thousand on a good night - why do anything to tick them off when you're already hemorrhaging fans?

The Orioles also point out they're not the only team charging more for game-day tickets and that 10 other teams did it last season.

But let's bring up that magic number again: 12 straight losing seasons. None of the other 10 teams - the Diamondbacks, Braves, Indians, Marlins, Dodgers, Yankees, Padres, Mariners, Rays and Rangers - have been anywhere near that bad.

Conclusion: Their fans are seeing better baseball for the money, whatever they're paying.

Before we beat up too much on the Orioles, give them this: Their average ticket price of $23 is four bucks less than the major league average.

"In 2000, our average ticket price was $19.50," Greg Bader, the team's director of communications, said Wednesday. "To think it went up only $3.50 in all that time, I think that's pretty remarkable."

All right, I'll give him that. But I would also say that raising ticket prices dramatically when your team is stinking up Camden Yards year after year would be financial suicide.

The place would be so empty on game days, you could hold an RV show at the same time.

In fact, instead of raising ticket prices for same-day sales, maybe the Orioles should do what some theaters do.

For instance, if you're in Manhattan and want to take in a Broadway show that day, you can go to one of those TKTS booths and buy tickets discounted up to 50 percent.

And here in town, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Center Stage offer discounts on same-day ticket purchases.

Their philosophy is simple: They want to fill seats. And they'll do whatever it takes, including taking a small hit at the box office.

As for the Orioles jacking up "premium game" prices - by about 10 percent over last year - that feels wrong, too.

Sure, those games draw the biggest crowds by far. And if you're a cynic, you say all those loud Yankees and Red Sox fans who pour into Camden Yards will be the ones getting fleeced.

But plenty of Orioles fans will take a hit in their wallet, too. And they won't forget it - especially if the home team gets blown out in those games the way it often does.

"We feel the modest increase levied for premium games and last-minute purchases will not serve as an impediment to fans to attend Oriole games," Bader said.

I don't know how much of an impediment it'll be.

But it feels wrong.

You don't do this to your fans. Not now. Not with all the bad baseball they've seen for 12 long years.

Listen to Kevin Cowherd from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays with Jerry Coleman on Fox 1370 AM Sports.